What is fact, is always beyond fiction. What is truth- is beyond resurrection. The pundits today take a surprising spritual turn. Not out of compulsion, or misery,no. It was the omnipresent symphony within the melancholy, the voices – the sheer resplendence within it.

One must have heard of Indian Ocean – a name synonymous with college fests throughout the country. The band has taken the country by storm, and has been riding the waves of fame since the early 1990’s. Their unique blend of rock with indo-centric tunes, give them a very subtle and soulful appeal. I was lured into this song through another album of the “Bandeh” fame.

The jive within their voices made this pundit yearn for more. The next step was procuring the album – Kandisa. I was startled from the early softness and mellowness. The language was Greek to me. But as the saying goes- Music has always triumphed over barriers of language. The percussion followed – very steady, yet soft. The guitars were beyond comprehension – hats off to Susmit Sen and Rahul Ram.

Kandisa was much more than an engineering college fest anthem as I found out after further reading. It is an ancient prayer in Aramic- a language that traces its roots from the Babylonian yore. It kicks off with an invocation to the Strong Powerful one above- at whose feet one falls humbly. This actually lays solid ground to the fact that civilizations have shared an eternal bond with God. He has forever been the powerful one – across all faiths and religions. The prayer proceeds stating that this fact shall forever be in memory. And so it has for thousands of years.

The prayer concludes with a simple invocation of the Holy immortal One to be merciful. The prayer may be a simple invocation. But as humans, i forever wonder as a mute spectator- have we not modified this wisdom to suit our devilish needs. The requirement of a recent Indian film requiring the defence of a certain faith in very fragile fabric of our contemporary, is a brute hypocrisy of how high our society has sunk to has sunk to. Kandisa may be a mere invocation- but the truths that lay interwoven within its syllables- carries its burden of communal tolerance and harmony.

Some have gone on to ridicule Indian Ocean for having defaced the original syllables of the incantation. However, the passive pundits here not only congratulate them but see them as Pundits within their own right. Messengers of God – is what suits them better. Kandisa, just like Aramic might have been reduced to the sands of time. However, its discovery in benevolent tunes – sung to the greater glory of mankind; is what will keep it aliver for eternity.